So this is why it’s hard not to get at least a tad excited for Foursquare for Businesses, Foursquare’s new companion app for its existing merchant dashboard.

With the app (which is only available for iOS and Android, alas), business owners can monitor Foursquare check-in activity, check out top customers, and monitor analytics data — all from their smartphones. Owners can also use it to activate and deactivate specials, which they’ve only been able to do from their computers.

Foursquare’s angle should be pretty clear: Businesses are becoming massively important to Foursquare’s bottom line. The more information Foursquare gives them, the more attractive Foursquare becomes. That means an actual way to make money — and perhaps confirmation that Foursquare has a sustainable business model behind all of these check-ins.